I like cats, iced coffee and the color purple. I like reading, writing, making soap and thinking about what's next. I am a double lung transplant patient with cystic fibrosis.

My Two Favorite Dorks

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Getting Ready

It has been a week of getting ready...getting ready for our trip, getting my lungs in shape for a vacation, getting everything set that we are leaving behind (pets and house.) We are now two days away and things are in pretty good shape.

I was reflecting today on what a journey this has been. Back in April, when my surgery got postponed because my lungs were not doing well, I was afraid the trip might be jeopardized.

By the time of my rescheduled surgery, my lung functions were some of the highest they have been in the past three years. Surgery was flawless. Preventative IVs for it were a pain, but things went so well that I stopped them only 10 days after surgery instead of 2-3 weeks like I might have. Yay trip!

It was between that time of stopping IVs and still being on a lot of exercise restriction that my lungs started acting up again. When I was able to do pulmonary function tests about a month after surgery, my numbers were one of the lowest they have been in about five years. (Cue the 'CF is a roller coaster' cliche.) I was getting short of breath with hardly any exertion, but otherwise I felt okay. How was I going to manage being out west with the higher elevation (which can be an issue for me even when healthy) and what about all of the hiking and bumming around we wanted to do outdoors? Not to mention running around with all of our nieces and nephews.

The last few weeks have been a cautiously optimistic "Yay trip!" My lung functions, which I have been tracking every day, have inched slowly upward, but have also kind of stagnated. I have been exercising at about the limit that my back will allow, I am still on a decently elevated Prednisone. In short, I'm doing pretty much all I can do - and I'm still not where I would like to be.

BUT, as we set out on our trip, saddled with duffel bags of medication, supplies, oxygen tanks and my less-than-ideal but stable health I am thinking, I did it. We're going on the trip. We're going on the trip! We're going on the trip!!

That, I guess, is the point of everything. Life happens, you have to adjust. If you're are lucky, you can keep moving forward. And if you're really lucky, you can go on a 5,000-plus-mile road trip with your favorite person, see all kinds of amazing things and visit the people you love most in the world.

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My name is Laura Smith (I also go by "catboogie" and "environmental fiend" online) and I am a 37-year old woman with cystic fibrosis (CF) and CF-related diabetes. I received a double lung transplant in 2014 from Duke University.

I am a writer interested in the environment: Until the end of 2013, I worked at the state chapter of an international environmental nonprofit organization, which I loved very much.

I live in Raleigh, NC with my husband, Todd, and together we have two golden retrievers and two cats. We love to travel and both have a soft spot for Montana. I like to keep an active social life and in my spare time I go to hockey games, make melt & pour soap, read, and play on the internet. I currently volunteer for multiple organizations pertaining to cystic fibrosis, lung transplant, and the environment.